Fire-curtain for theaters.



{PATENTED AUG. 8, 1905.

' L. POTTHOFF.

FIRE CURTAIN FOR THEATERS.

APPLICATION FILED JAN.18, 1904.

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ANDREW, s. amuum co. PNOj'O-LIYHOGRAPNERS, WASN\NG\ON 'B. a

LOUIS POTTHOFF, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

FIRE-CURTAIN FOR THEATERS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 8, 1905.

Application filed January 18, 1904. Serial No. 189,455.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LOUIS POTTHOFF, aciti- Zen of the United States,residing at Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Fire-Curtains forTheaters, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactspecification.

This invention relates to fire-curtains for theaters, &c., and has forits object to provide an apparatus which can be controlled from adistance and which automatically closes and prevents the passage offlames and gases from one side to the other.

In theaters and other places where large numbers of persons assemble itis necessary to provide a fire-curtain of refractory material which canbe operated quickly to shut off the auditorium from the stage in case ofemergency and which when not in use will be out of sight. The use offlexible curtains for this purpose is objectionable, as they yield toany sudden rush of air and are likely to be torn or else stick in theguides, and thereby become useless.

According to this invention I provide a curtain of corrugated sheetmetal or other material, made up of two or more sections, which can bebrought together by suitable mechanism to form a rigid wall, completelyshutting off the space on one side from that on the other. In one formwhich I have illustrated the screen is composed of four sections. two ofwhich are movable and two fixed and constructed to form tight jointswhen brought together. In devices of this nature the operating mechanismis of great importance, as it must be easily manipulated, and simple inconstruction, so as not to get out of order. With this object in view Iconnect the movable sections by a cable or chain and weight the topsection, so that as it falls the lower section will rise. Suitablelatching means is provided for holding the sections apart, which may becontrolled from a distance by any suitable means, as air-pressure,magnets, or mechanical means.

Another feature of the invention resides in a variable counterbalancefor the movable sections, so that they will start quickly and movegradually slower as they approach each other. In order to accomplishthis, there is considerable difference in the weights of the sections,and the lower section carries aseries of weights whose ag regate weightis slightly less than the difference between the weights of the secbelowthe floor, respectively.

tions. Asthe lower section rises it lifts more of the weights, andconsequently the sections move slower as they approach.

The invention will be more particularly described in connection with theaccompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a front View of a stage,partly in section, showing the curtain in open position. Fig. 2 is anend view showing the sections closed. Fig. 3 is an end view showing thesection open; and Fig. i is a horizontal section, on an enlarged scale,through one of the sections. Fig. 5 is a view of a modification. Fig. 6is a detail view of Fig. 5.

1 represents the stage-opening, having the proscenium-arch 2, floor 3,and side walls 1 4.

. Mounted on a shaft 5, carried in suitable hangers, are pulleys 6, overwhich run chains 7, attached to the movable sections 8 9. 1O 11 aresections fixed to the building at the top and The proscenium-arch isusually higher at the back of the stage-opening than at the front, andthe upper fixed section 10 can be designed to fit this space and not bevisible from the front. The lower section 11 is made in the same way, soas to come close under the floor-level. The sections 10 and 11 have,projecting ledges 12, preferably curved, which act as stops inconjunction with similar ledges 13 on the movable sections 8 and 9. Inmany cases the fixed sections may be dispensed with, as where there is acomplete fire-wall with only the stage-opening to be protected by thecurtain. One of the movable sections carries flanges 14 on its edge,which are flared outwardly to act as guides when the sections meet andalso to form a tight joint between the sections. Each section iscomposed of corrugated material, such as wrought-iron or heavysheetasbestos, having the corrugations running vertically, and isprovided with a channel-shaped frame 15 around its edge to stiffen itand allow of the convenient attachment of the operating devices. Byhaving the corrugations run vertically the channels can act as flues,thus permitting currents of air to circulate and cool the surface of thesection and preventing it from becoming overheated. For this purpose thecorrugations may be made very deep and close together, so as to give alarge amount of cooling-surface. Each movable section runs in grooves 16in the wall and has guiderollers 17 to run on the sides of the groove.Attached to the lower movable section 9 are I chains 18, carryingadjustable weights 19.

The weights of the sections are so disposed that when the sections startto move the weights will remain on the floor, but as the sectionsapproach each other more and more weights will be lifted, eachadditional weight lifted causing the sections to move slower, so thattheir impact will be cushioned.

The stage-floor is provided with a door 20, which closes the aperture inthe floor when the curtains are open. The door 20 is counterweighted andis preferably held shut by a latch which will also hold the curtainsopen. For this purpose the door may be provided with an eye 32, which isengaged by aspringactuated latch 21. There may be a suitable notch inthe section allowing the latter to pass over the latch in onedirection,but not in the other, so as to hold the curtain independentlyof the door 20 if desired. 34 is a cable or chain for withdrawing thelatch to release the sections and the door 20. This cable or chain maybe led to various parts of the house, so that the curtain can be closedby one of the attendants in case of need. 1 do not restrict myself toany particular operating means, as it is obvious that various means, ascompressed-air or magnets, may be used. If desired, the door 20 may beopened by other means and the latch located wherever desired, and I donot restrict myself to any particular arrangement.

The curtains can be opened by means of a chain 22 and wheel 23 on theshaft 5. On account of the approximate counterbalancing of the sectionsthey can be easily started and given sufiicient momentum to pass thelatch 21, which will thereupon spring into the eye 32, thereby lockingthe door and holding the curtain open. If preferred, the latch maypositively engage the curtain.

In the modification shown in Fig. 5 I show a curtain made up of sixsections, of which four are movable. In this arrangement the sections 26and 24 correspond to the sections 8 and 9 and are connected by a cable29, running over a pulley 36, fixed on the shaft 5. The upper section 26is heavier than the lower section 24, and the latter carries theadjustable weights 19. similarly connected by a cable 30, which runsover a pulley 25, loosely mounted on'the shaft 5. 31 and 33 are stopsfor the sections 27 and 28, respectively. Ahand-cable and wheel is alsoprovided for turning the shaft 5 to open the curtain. As the shaft isturned the fast pulley carrying the cable 29 is turned, causing thesections 26 and 24 to move up and down, respectively, independently ofthe sections 28 and 27. The latter do not move until the ledge on thesection 26 engages a ledge 35 on the section 28. Continued revolution ofthe shaft 5 now lifts sections 26 and 28 together, allowing sections 24and 27 to fall together. In closing the pairs of sections 24 and 26 and27 28 start together; but the sec- The sections 27 and 28 are tions 27and 28 stop first because their travel is less.

The operation will be clear from the foregoing description. As soon asthe latch is withdrawn the sections move toward each other and remaintogether until separated by revolving the shaft 5.

Modifications and changes may be made without departing from the scopeof the invention, and I do not desire to be limited to the exactconstruction which I have shown and described.

Having thus described my invention, I declare that what I claim as new,and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a fire-curtain, the combination of two movable sections, means formoving them vertically toward and from each other, said sections havingvertical air-channels of greater depth than width in their faces,whereby when the curtain is exposed to heat currents of air will becreated in the channels and cool the surfaces of the sections,substantially as described.

2. In a fire-curtain, the combination ofa plurality of pairs of top andbottom sections, the top section of each pair being heavier than thebottom section, a shaft mounted above said sections, a fixed pulley onsaid shaft, a flexible connection running over said pulley andconnecting the sections comprising the middle pair, a loose pulley onsaid shaft, a flexible connection running over saidloose pulley andconnecting the sections forming the next pair, and means for turning theshaft to open the sections, substantially as described.

3. In afire-curtain, the combination ofa plurality of pairs of top andbottom sections, the top section of each pair being heavier than thebottom section, a shaft mounted above said sections, a fixed pulley onsaid shaft, a flexible connection running over said pulley andconnecting the sections comprising the middle pair, a loose pulley onsaid shaft, a flexible connection running over said loose pulley andconnecting the sections forming the next pair, means on the middlesections adapted to engage the upper section of the second pair, andmeans for turning the shaft to open the sec tions, substantially asdescribed.

4. In a fire-curtain, the combination of aplurality of pairs of top andbottom sections, the top sections being heavier than the bottomsections, connections between each top section and its bottom section,said connections permitting the pairs of sections to move independentlyof each other, means for releasing the sections to allow them to close,and means for holding them open, said means being controllab'le from adistance, substantially as described.

5. In a fire-curtain, the combination of a plurality of pairs of top andbottom sections, having vertical air-channels of greater depth thanwidth, means for moving the sections com v prising the middle pair forengaging and raising the section next above, whereby the top and bottomsections move away from each other, substantially as described.

6. In a fire-curtain, the combination of a plurality of pairs of top andbottom sections, the top section of each pair being heavier than thebottom section, means for moving the sections comprising the middlepair, and means on the upper section of each pair for engaging andraising the section next above whereby the top and bottom sections movefrom each other, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

LOUIS POTTHOFF. Witnesses JULIAN S. Woos'rER, GEORGE N. KERR.

